Agent Pryde
by KatePryde
Summary: Okay, so joining an elite group of spies at the age of sixteen after ditching the X-Men wasn't my best plan. But I did owe Phil a favor and I had no where else to go. The only question is, what the hell did I get my blind self into this time? My name is Kitty Pryde, but I guess you can call me Agent now. 5th story in series.
1. Chapter 1

**March 31st, 2014 **

"You know Phil, when I asked you for a job, this was the last thing I saw myself doing for you."

"You asked, kid, I offered."

"Do I at least get my own office?"

"No."

"My own computer?"

"Do you think that I'm stupid enough to let you share with anyone? I already have the model you requested, and I had it programmed with that schematics you sent me."

"Well, look at you. You learned how to open an email. And assemble a team."

Phil Coulson glanced up at me from across the table he was currently sitting at.

"Don't play dumb, Phil. You hired me to be a tech specialist and a liaison between you and the Triskelion. Of course I knew about everything and everyone on this Bus before I boarded said Bus. By the way, the next time you get kidnapped, I would love to hear about it from you yourself and not a damn file, got it?"

He continued to stare at me as I hefted the box I held in my arms and sat it on the table.

"What could you have done?"

I stopped unpacking the box of technology that I had brought on board with me and stared at him uncomprehendingly.

"I'm going to continue setting up my space, which none of your scientists or grunts will ever touch without my express permission on the pain of death. I am going to pretend that you never said something quite that stupid, and go about my day, okay? Once I'm done unpacking, your plane should be fueled up and ready to go."

He met my unseeing gaze. "Okay. Briefing for the mission will commence the second everyone gets on board."

"I don't need to be briefed. I already know what we're going after. Oh, and one more thing. I'm done with glasses and contacts, so your people better be prepared for what they are about to see when they look at me."

"Okay then. Wheels up in thirty." He stood up and walked to the end of the room, where I assume there was a door.

"Phil."

He stopped in his tracks.

"Don't make this personal, okay? Nothing good can come of it."

"Ian Quinn made it personal when he shot my unarmed agent point blank. It doesn't get much more personal than that. Excuse me, I need to oversee her medpod boarding the plane."

He left.

"What the hell have I gotten myself into this time?" I wondered out loud.

No one answered.


	2. Chapter 2

**March 31st, 2014 **

I let out a frustrated growl.

"Of course I like it here Kurt, and no, I'm not coming back for a while. We've been over this, brother. I need some time."

His sigh echoed throughout my tiny bunk.

"Understandable, Kitty. But we all miss you. Piotr especially."

"I know. I miss you guys too. More than you think."

I had only been on board the Bus for a few hours, and I hadn't encountered any of Phil's people. I wasn't even sure if they knew I was on the plane. Frankly, I liked it that way. I doubted that it would be as quiet as it currently was once they discovered my presence.

"He's standing next to me you know. You're on the speaker phone."

"What?" I asked in slight astonishment.

"I am here, Katya."

I have to admit, tears came to my eyes at the sound of his familiar voice. So what if I had been gone for only twenty-four hours, I missed my Russian lug.

"Kurt, you mind?" I asked.

He chuckled lightly, and though it sounded slightly hollow I knew he was going to be fine.

"I know where I am not wanted, little sister. I will leave you two love birds alone. No funny business now!"

There was a _BAMF!_ and I laughed as Piotr started to cough, for Kurt had teleported out of the room while standing next to my boyfriend, even though he knew it would make the place smell like sulfur and brimstone.

"I wish you could be here with me to describe this place," I said slightly wistfully once his coughing abated, "Phil isn't that much of an artist. I doubt I would be able to see the place through my finger tips if it were him painting it instead of you."

"You give me to much praise, little one. How goes the new job?"

"Welllllll..." I dragged out.

"Is there problem?"

"No," I was quick to reassure him, "No problems. I just haven't had to do anything. We took off a while ago yet I haven't been called up for duty yet or whatever he calls it."

"Took off?" Piotr asked curiously.

"Did I mention that my new living space is a giant plane?"

"Then how are you talking on the phone with me?"

"Piotr, we've been together for nearly a year now. You know that when it comes to electronics, I reign supreme. The plane has wifi, so I routed the call through the server. Kind of like Skype."

I could practically hear him grin through the headset earphones.

"My little electronic wizard."

I smirked. "Keep making up names for me, I like it when you do that."

"Do you know where you are heading?" His question was somewhat timid, as if he was scared about the answer. Well, he wasn't getting one.

"Yes," I sighed, "And you know I can't tell you. I technically shouldn't even be conversing with you right now, but I am and I will and they know they can't stop me. As part of my contract I get one free weekend a month to do what I please. I'll be back before you know it, and we can go to the park and you can paint me or the sunset or whatever strikes your fancy. I promise I won't make a sound."

"I will hold you to that," he rumbled.

Just then, the plane shook with a significant amount of force, so much that I was thrown off the bed. My laptop quickly followed. I hit the wall with a thud and a moan as I impacted with the steel before landing on the floor on my side.

"M-f-ing hell son of a biscuit eating donkey whore." I said loudly.

"Kitty?" Piotr asked hurriedly. "What is it? What was that noise? Are you alright?"

I sat myself up, wincing slightly. "I'm fine babe. But I'm gonna have to call you back. I'm pretty sure that was my call-to-arms."

My fingers felt around the floor for my laptop, and once I found it moments later I lightly touched the keys, but didn't press them.

"I love you." I said firmly. "And I'll see you in a few weeks."

"I love you too."

I tucked the memory of him saying that deep into my mind before cutting our connection, then stood up to reach for the door controls.

"Show time." I whispered to myself.

* * *

"Really?" I heard Phil say in the distance as I made my way down the hall. "All the war and chaos in the world and SHIELD sends a plane after us?"

"Three planes, actually." A man responded as he walked beside him. "A small transport to dock and pair of F-35's to make sure we hand over Quinn."

They obviously hadn't heard me come up behind them. I continued to move until I was less than three feet away, and let out a slight cough to alert them to my presence. Phil didn't jump, and I'm sure he already knew that I was there, but his companion was so started by my sudden appearance that he let out a rather loud _ahhh! _while jumping in fright and crashing into a nearby chair._ Or at least I think it was a chair, anyway. It could be something else entirely. _

Let's just say that he crashed into a piece of nearby furniture and leave it at that.

"What's going on?" I asked my superior..._Oh dear god he's my superior now. Well, in name only. There is no way I'm taking any orders from him. Except serious ones. But then again, he is serious all the time. _

...

It's easy to tell that I am excited about my new job.

Anyway, I asked Phil what the hell was going on, again, since it appeared that he hadn't heard me the first time.

"We're currently being boarded. We didn't hand over Quinn to SHIELD back at the Hub."

"Yeah," I said nonchalantly, "I got that part. What I don't understand is why you didn't obey direct orders from a higher chain of command. What kind of example are you setting for younger agents? Now they think that disobeying command is acceptable. You can't pull that stupid do-as-I-say-and-not-as-I-do card here, Phil, it doesn't apply."

"Kitty, this isn't the best time to give your two cents worth..."

"It's the perfect time," I cut in heatedly. "You can't expect me to be able to do my job with you doing whatever the hell you want at every turn. I warned you not to let this get personal, and now you are no doubt facing some kind of disciplinary action unless you hand Ian Quinn over to whatever power has come to pick him up, and do so without any more problems. Look, you're probably thinking that I'm being a hard-ass, and I am. But this is the reality of the situation."

We were facing each other now, and if I said that we weren't all up in each other's faces, I would be lying. Even though I was incredibly short, I was currently wearing rather large heels which made me almost the same height as Phil. We were standing nose-to-practically-nose (Okay, I was totally missing the mark by a few inches) and breathing rather heavily. Neither of us had started yelling yet, but the tension was thick and in the next few moments it was an almost certain thought that one of us was going to start using their "loud voice".

However, this was not to be. The person with him had to add their two cents worth.

"And just who are you?" His companion asked rather rudely.

"Kat Pryde, liaison to the Triskelion." I snapped back. _So, I kind of like my new official title._ "I'm Phil's new glorified secretary." Okay, so I was being a total smart-ass. What can I say? The guy rubbed me the wrong way.

"This ain't a place for field trips, kid." He snapped back at me.

"Ward." Phil said as he set me upright. "Enough. Kat," the new moniker I had chosen for myself sounded strange coming from his lips, "This is Agent Grant Ward."

"Ah," I said knowingly, "The grunt. Nice to meet you, and I'll be sure to have your file read entirely by tonight."

"Just who the hell-"

"She's with me," Phil cut in again, "And that's all you need to know."

I smirked at him childishly, and let it get bigger when he mumbled under his breath.

"Stupid kids. Can't babysit another one."

"You don't have to babysit me." I responded, even though a normal person wouldn't be able to hear him.

I could feel him looking at me in shock, but I ignored him, because just then the plane shook again, and I pressed against a wall to steady myself as the sounds of us being boarded flooded all our ears.

Phil twitched. "They scratch my paint, I'm gonne be pissed. Kat, you're with me."

"I'll await your orders, sir." Ward said, ignoring me completely now that I pissed him off.

Phil took me by the arm and led me to a staircase on the other side of the plane. "Watch your step," he cautioned, "We're going down."

"Sure thing boss." I quipped, grasping the handrail and slowly making my descent, feeling for each step before I committed to the action.

"Where are we going exactly?" I asked a moment later when he led me off the stairs.

"Right here."

"And just where is here?"

"We're directly below the transport that just docked. I need to to stay quiet, okay?"

"What for?"

"I don't know who they sent after us, but please don't make any of this any harder with your smart-ass comments, okay? Baiting Ward was not a good idea."

I have to admit, I knew that Phil was in between a rock and a hardplace, but his words still stung like a mother. He had never talked to me in that tone of voice, like he was accusing me of failing some all-important future deciding test. Which is what normal children my age were currently worried about, as opposed to pissing off their commanding officer.

Oh well.

I made my choices. Now I have to live with them.


	3. Chapter 3

**March 31st, 2014**

"Garret?" Phil said suddenly, "What the hell are you doing here?"

I clutched his arm tighter, admittedly somewhat scared by the unknown presence that had joined us in the room. At times like this, I hated my blindness and wished to God that I could see the man approaching rather than feel a tingle down my spine.

I had never heard of any Agent Garret. I made a mental note to look him up before the day ended, even though we were already well into the afternoon.

"Well," the stranger drawled, "As opposed to the Level 8 jackass I'm currently staring at, I still follow orders."

I couldn't help but chuckle. He had Phil pegged pretty perfectly. My sudden amusement did nothing to diffuse the tension however. Phil's muscles were tight beneath my hand and his breathing was slightly labored, though anyone with normal ears wouldn't be able to tell. The point was that I could.

"You're the worst at following orders." Phil retorted.

"Maybe," Garret replied, reaching into his coat. I reacted instinctively, placing myself in between Phil and any perceived threat. Garret paused, as did Phil. I could tell that they were both staring at me.

I raised my hands in warning. "Why don't you do that a little slower." My voice was clearly wary.

"Kid, you have no idea who you're threatening." Garret said, his tone colder than I had yet to hear.

"Neither do you. Slower." I brokered no argument. He stared me down for several long seconds, but he was the one to look away first. I knew my red irises unnerved him, and for the first time I was truly proud to have them.

Phil cleared his throat behind me. "You were saying, Garret?" He asked pointedly.

"I may be the worst at following orders, old man. But I like this one."

Crinkle.

He had pulled a piece of paper out of his jacket, and not a gun like I had originally assumed he possessed. I stepped back next to Phil again, but I did not let my guard down. I made that mistake one too many times in the past, and I was not going to make it now.

"You are to immediately turn Ian Quinn over for transport to the Fridge."

_Oh, hell no. _

"And you are to immediately lose that attitude, Level 7. You don't have that kind of authority hear." Phil's hand clapped down onto my arm, and I shut up. Even I knew when to stop.

Someone else clanged down the stairs to join us, and I was suddenly on high alert again.

"Agent Antoine Triplet, Agent Phillip Coulson. And...well, not sure who the hell this is."

"Kat Pryde, liaison to the Triskelion and Consultant for SHIELD." I interjected proudly. "Not that my name is any of your business."

"Consultant for what, exactly?" Garret asked.

"Classified." I quipped back.

He looked to Phil, who I knew had to be smirking by this point. "You heard the lady. Classified."

"Whatever," Garret shrugged the whole thing off. "I'm sure I'll find out soon enough."

"I doubt that." Phil's voice had hardened.

"Annnnyywayyy," someone (I can only assume it was Antoine) dragged out, "It is an honor to meet you sir." Clearly, he was addressing Phil. "The way Agent Garret talks about you, I know that you are one of SHIELD's finest."

Phil shrugged slightly under the newcomers scrutiny, and I squeezed his arm reassuringly. "It's fine," I whispered. "They'll be gone soon." And they would. While I might not agree with the way Phil had gone about this whole thing, I did know that he was right. Ian wasn't going to get away with what he did to that young agent, not as long as I was alive.

"Trip joined me as my specialist after Ward joined your circus here."

"It's anything but a circus, Garret." Phil stated.

"Yeah, well, that's not what I am currently seeing. Trip," the man turned to his superior, "Go secure the prisoner."

He brushed past me as he walked deeper into the Bus, murmuring an apology as he did so. I made as if to follow him, but Phil stopped me. He drew me closer to his side so that he could whisper into my ear. "Let Ward handle him."

"Why?"

"They go way back. He needs this."

"Fine." I pulled away. I could feel the weight of Garret's stare on my person.

"How old are you any way?" He asked me suddenly.

"Not your concern." My reply was firm.

He turned his attention back to Phil. "She's feisty, I like her. She reminds me of you when we were rookies."

My eyebrows shot up at that. I had been compared to a lot of people, but Phil was not one of them.

I could no longer hear Triplet's footsteps, and I said as much to Phil. The tension between the two men grew thicker, so thick that I could practically feel it between my fingertips.

"Phil, look," Garret said, "It's nothing personal. Just business."

"It's everything personal." Phil bit out. He let go of me and stalked off to his office, leaving me behind with Garret. I shot one wide-eyed glance at the man before following my commander. It didn't take a rocket scientist to know that Garret had chosen to follow me.

"Now you've done it!" I told the him.

"Sorry kid, but it had to be done. He's getting too involved with this."

"Well, maybe you're not involved enough to see where he is coming from. What if it had been one of your people?"

"It was."

I was so caught off guard by his reply that I ran into the wall instead of the door.

_Oof!_

Once I impacted fully, I bounced back off. I was heading on a one-way trip to the floor, but he caught me before I could hit it as well.

In that moment, I knew Garret and I would never be friends. His touch startled me at first, and in the nest few moments I was grateful he had caught me. But then I took a moment to myself as he helped me stand upright, and realized that I could almost taste his hunger for power. Don't ask me exactly how I could, because I don't know the hows or whys of it. In the few brief seconds that he had his hands on my bare arms, I felt a darkness in him deeper than anything I had ever known.

I jerked back from him, mumbling a thank you. He ignored it, however, and continued to follow Phil. I resolved to do a deep-background check on him and anyone associated with him as I followed in his wake. He was up to something. I just didn't know what.

When I finally located the door to Phil's office, Garret was already inside.

"Phil come on," he was saying, "Just because Fury gave you this pretty plane doesn't mean they won't shoot it right out of the sky."

"Why are you really hear?" Phil countered, turning from his desk to face the two of us. Well, to face Garret. I moved to Phil's side as quickly as possible and swung myself up onto the desk. "SHIELD could have sent any security team after us," he continued, "Why you?"

Garret shuffled his feet slightly against the carpet, and Phil leaned back against the wood while crossing his arms.

"Why you?" He repeated.

Silence. And for once, I hadn't created it.

"You've been chasing him to, haven't you?" I said, putting the pieces together. "For a while now, I bet."

"Since Malta." Garret confirmed. "And it just so happens that your team's little stunt in Italy yesterday cost my team weeks of work."

"What is this?" I asked the both of them, trying to diffuse the tension in any way possible. "High school? That ended years ago for all of us, grow up!"

That didn't even make any sense to me, and I'm not sure why I let it come out of my mouth. They were both staring at me, so I just shrugged my shoulders.

"Turn him over." Garret said finally after a few moments of silence. "Just turn him over, and you won't have to deal with me anymore."

Phil and I both shifted positions, straightening up at the veiled threat. Garret didn't need to say what would happen if we didn't turn him over, he already knew. Phil turned himself slightly to me in a silent question, but I shook my head. There was no way any of my powers could help us in that moment.

"That can't happen right now. Not yet. Quinn shot one of my agents."

Garret tried to speak but Phil cut him off. "She's on life support downstairs. We are taking her to the trauma center in Bethezda."

"Wait," Garret said slowly, "Quinn actually pulled the trigger? He doesn't seem like the type."

Silently, I agreed with him. Quinn was to much of a pansy to do any dirty work himself, unless there was something in it for him.

"Skye infiltrated his compound in Malta, and when he saw her yesterday, well, let's just say that he took it _personally_."

"Never took him for a trigger-man." I cut in. They both turned to me. "What? I read the file. He pays others for that."

"Ignore her." Phil said abruptly. I took that as my cue to shut up and listen.

"I've lost three of my own while chasing him," Garret was saying.

"Then you understand why I can't give him to you until we save my agent." Phil was using his hard voice, and I knew in that moment that there definitely was not going to be any arguing with him on this.

"Because if she doesn't make it..." Garret trailed off slowly.

We were all thinking it.

_Quinn won't either._


End file.
